A Dance with Death
by Olivia Sage
Summary: Tsuna is to die. It is inevitable. Unavoidable. This story depicts the changes made in his life when he prepares for it. The changes in the Guardians. The Guardians who have served him for 2 long decades and will still continue to do so. These Guardians who want to express any thoughts, confessions, opinions and their undying love for their beloved Sky. *No Yaoi*
1. Day 1

**A/N [ 26/6/12 ] : Hello everybody! This story was just at like, the top of my head so yeah... And btw, this is not Yaoi :D**

**Disclaimer : I... don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. If I did though, Tsuna would be sooo much cooler and Hibari would be soooooo much more... naked ;D  
**

**Summary : Tsuna is to die. It is inevitable. Unavoidable. This story depicts the changes made in his life when he prepares for it. The changes in the Guardians. The Guardians who have served him for 2 long decades and will still continue to do so. These Guardians who want to express any thoughts, confessions, opinions and their undying love for their beloved Sky. *No Yaoi*  
**

**Enjoy. Read and Review, thanks.**

* * *

The day Sawada Tsunayoshi started _living_ ; started enjoying life, was the day he opened his front door to his devil of a tutor, Reborn. And since we _all_ know what happened after that, I'll skip to what happened after that. Yes, after-after-that.

It was a typical day for Tsuna, Vongola Decimo. He'd a busload of paperwork. He'd to take a trip to an ally famiglia to apologise for the damage Kyoya caused. He'd a meeting with the Alliance Council of the Vongola.

Tsuna breathed out a short sigh. He'd never thought he would ever say it but he'd rather go back into the hundreds of life-endangering situations rather than sign another piece of the bloody load of paperwork which stemmed from the fact his temperamental Guardians were so... _temperamental. _Emphasis on _mental_.

To make things worse, he had a blinding migraine and god, he was so _hot. _He loosened his tie and took off his blazer before throwing it onto the ground. Maybe he should call Shamal... He quickly dismissed the thought. The doctor would rather burn in hell than treat a fellow man.

Tsuna looked back at his paperwork before lighting his hand with Dying Will flames in an effort to burn it all. He groaned when the paper remained unscathed. Reborn sure was good. First the waterproof paper, then the inedible paper (a story for another time), and the tracking device paper and now, fireproof paper? He suddenly jumped when a voice burst through via his speaker. 'Tsunayoshi-kun.' It was Irie Shouichi. 'I'm sorry but the fireproof paper was Reborn's idea.' He said, evident mirth heard in his voice. It was obvious Reborn wasn't the only one to come up with that idea.

Tsuna didn't reply, he growled. It didn't seem to have the effect he wanted as Shouichi laughed instead. The two had become good friends after the whole Ten-Years-Jump-Into-The-Future thingy. Shouichi was easy to talk to but he really got way too nervous the first few times Tsuna approached him. He'd had a bad case of stomach aches when finally, Shouichi's_ stomach_ seemed to have gotten used to him.

'Whatever, Shouichi.' Tsuna rolled his eyes as he picked up his Mont Blanc pen and continued signing the paperwork, minding to write little notes and suggestions on the side.

Shouichi wiped tears from his eyes, holding his stomach. It'd been a long time since he'd had such a good laugh.

Little did he know it'd be one of the last.

* * *

Today is Sunday. It was the last day of their short vacation to Nanimori, Japan. About a week ago, Tsuna, his Guardians and Reborn along with Kyoko, Haru, Bianchi, and I-Pin decided they needed a break. Tsuna was especially ecstatic when he heard. He'd be off paperwork for a while and his Guardians wouldn't do much irrational things in Nanimori where the area was Kyoya's... area. Not only that, it was a sanctuary, a place that Tsuna made sure was safe, under his protection; the protection of the Vongola. Because of that small action, Nanimori was quite literally, crime free.

The perfect place to take a vacation.

Tsuna had been sleeping by the beach, Reborn right next to him. The girls were playing in the sea and the guys - with the exception of Kyoya who was visiting Nanimori-chuu - were playing beach volleyball with some locals. It was a clear win.

Tsuna would've loved to joined them but, he didn't feel all that well. He still had that bloody migraine and it was _killing _him. And that's saying something considering all the things he'd been through. He rolled over on his beach mat. It was _really_ hot. He got up, stripped off his shirt leaving him in 3/4 pants, it showed his well sculpted body that everyone had the privilege to be privy to.. **(A/N : I swear! Everyone blushed! *drools*)** He had considered taking off his sunglasses but decided against it. He waded into the sea, making his way to where the girls were feeling a bit woozy.

He took a step and fell into the sea hitting his head _hard _on a chunk of coral.

Hayato was no better. He almost died. When he saw Jyuudaime go down, he pretty much had a heart attack right there and then. He screamed and ran the 200 meters to Jyuudaime. If he didn't reach in time, Jyuudaime would drown. Takeshi lighted his rain flame and released Jirou, his Rain Dog before transforming it into his - or rather, Ugetsu's - three irregular short swords covered in rain flames and threw it with amazing precision at the area he saw Tsuna go down. The short swords cut through the sea water, splitting it, leaving a path, a hole. It was an opening for Hayato to get Tsuna. Hayato then called Uri, his storm leopard, out and climbed onto her back. She jumped as Hayato grabbed the passed-out Tsuna by his waist. Their teamwork was impressive.

Chrome had created an illusion with the help of Mukuro whereby trapping Kyoko, Haru and I-Pin in their own little world before rushing to help her Boss. Her Boss would most definitely not want to worry the three girls.

'TSUNAAAA!' yelled Ryohei. Unlike the others, he had not seen Tsuna go down but even then, he'd more or less gotten the gist of it. 'Is Tsuna extremely alright? Is he dying?' Ryohei looked at Hayato who just laid Tsuna's body onto the sand.

'... Tsu-nii?' Lambo asked tentatively, shaking him.

Reborn who was watching everything from the sidelines decided to butt in. 'Move aside.' He leaned down putting his ear to Tsuna's chest. A weak heartbeat. It was expected but there was something irregular about it. Reborn frowned. Whatever that was, it wasn't normal.

'... Crowding are we now?' came a familiar cold voice.

* * *

Kyoya sighed in frustration. That stupid Omnivore - No, he should be demoted back to herbivore considering what just happened - had just carelessly hit his head and was _this_ close to dying. Okay, so he was exaggerating but even then! When the Omnivore wakes up, Kyoya would be sure to bite him to death.

The herbivores had explained to him what had happened but Reborn, the Carnivore was silent, a brooding look on his face. Kyoya narrowed his eyes at him, a silent question.

* * *

It wasn't until a few hours later when Tsuna was in the hospital and they were on night watch that he was able to ask Reborn of it.

'Kyoya. Something is wrong with Tsuna. His heartbeat was... irregular.'

'... That is not unusual. He nearly drowned.'

Reborn was agitated. 'No no, that wasn't it. It was more or a... lack of it. A dull thud. A much slower heartbeat than normal.' Kyoya frowned at this piece of information. Surely it was not that serious. 'If my ears have yet to fail me, I would say it was slowing even further the longer I heard it.' Reborn finished seriously.

It was extremely rare of the cold, emotionless Kyoya to show any which type emotion. Rare but not totally unseen. Kyoya's eyes widened. And for the first time of his life, Kyoya stuttered. 'T-Tsuna... He-Hea-Heart... A f-few weeks ago... Information... Disease... C-cases... D-d-dea...' Kyoya sat down quickly, calmed his erratic breathing. He leaned his forehead against his joined palms. Weeks ago he'd gotten information from his Foundation. The information…

'Reborn.' It was the first time Reborn was called by his name by Kyoya. It made him uneasy.

'Tsuna...' He trailed off.

'Yes, what is it?' Reborn pressed, eager for information.

Kyoya looked Reborn dead in the eye, his voice barely above a whisper.

'_He's going to die_.'

* * *

**Hibari was a bit... OOC... but oh well ! :D  
**

**So... That wasn't very long... But! It was 1200 words plus plus. It was fun typing ^^  
**

**Was it boring? Worth it to continue? Or was it the alright and good enough to continue? I sincerely hope it's the latter.  
**

**Drop a review, please. Thank you :D**


	2. Day 2

**A/N (6/7/12) : Hullo! OMG, sorry for updating so late, I was struggling with this onslaught of homework ._. I hate homework, really. Do you? :p To make up for it, I wrote this looong chappie that was like, 2,265 words long! :D But in the process, I think I might've made this a tad boring but, bear with me! :) **

* * *

**Thank you for the reviews I've received from : _mangopudding, Swanfrost15, Guest1, Guest2, Matsukaze Tenma._  
**

**Thank you for the Story Alerts, Favourite Story, an the occasional Favourite Author alerts by : ****_Neliaka, Natsume1111, Ceramicpizza, mangopudding, misteriosayuri, Aquamarine Lacus, haneshi47, Swanfrost15, ladyivory01, coldpop10, Seithr-Kairy, pokermaniac039, Aliinna, La signora Della Grande Cielo, ShiroKitan, The Neo Productions, Sky-Flame-27, Matsukaze Tenma.  
_**

**_Love you all !  
_**

**Have fun readinggggg ! :D**

* * *

**Day 2**

Reborn was fidgeting. Yes, that's right, fidgeting. He was a tad bit afraid of the feedback he might, no, he was sure to receive. The people he was about to call were in their own unique ways _protective_ of Tsuna. Despite that, he'd no choice. Tsuna was in trouble and he needed their help. He took a deep breath and dialed...

'_Dino, we have a problem. Tsuna, he ...'_

'_Enma, we have a problem. Tsuna ...'_

'_Timoteo, we have a problem ...'_

'_Iemitsu, we have a...'_

'_Xanxus, we have ...'_

'_Byakuran, we ...'_

'_Aria ...'_

* * *

_Beep... Beep... Beep..._

The eerie sound of the life support machinery filled the silent corridors. The hospital was fairly deserted save for the Guardians and the guards of Vongola Decimo. They were obviously taking no chances. Tsuna's safety was the first priority.

Decimo's Guardians sat by him. Hayato was standing by his door, blaming himself for everything - as usual - as he hit his head repeatedly on the wall leaving a visible crack. Takeshi was sitting rather languidly on a sofa. A _fake _smile plastered on his face. It was all he could do to ease the palpable tension in the room. By the gods, even Ryohei, the hyperactive one was unnaturally mellow. He sat, quiet. Not one word uttered since the incident.

Chrome and Mukuro were instructed by Reborn to escort the oblivious girls along with Lambo back to the hotel. They were reluctant to leave but, if that was what Decimo wanted, they would gladly fulfill it. Though, one particular thing was just begging for their attention. When they walked out, they saw - to their surprise - a frozen Kyoya, the emotion of shock and maybe, _just maybe_, a little bit of fear evident on his handsome face. It was odd for the stoic Kyoya to show any which kind of emotion, much more _fear and surprise _at that too! They knew well enough to leave him be... for the moment, at least. Mukuro made a mental note to pester him about it later on.

* * *

_He wondered if he was dead. Well, he had woken up in a strange place. He stood in a field, surrounded by overgrown grass drenched in red paint - or what he hoped was paint - , looking up, the sky was purple ; nightfall was approaching. In the middle of the field, not too far away was a huge tree with branches outstretched not unlike an oversized umbrella. Making his way to the tree, he saw a man, sitting - if he could be called that. The "man" was he hideous. He was willowy, tall and lanky. Nothing unusual about that, no, but his skin was the weirdest shade of dark-magenta. With long pointed ears like an elf and lips that looked permanently drawn back into a sneer revealing two pairs of yellow incisors. And to add to the growing list of abnormalities, he was covered with long, ghastly green-black scars all over. He'd a long thick ugly scar stretching from his left temple to his upper right side of his lip. His eye-whites were eye-yellows with thick black veins popping up every here and there; his pupils a shade darker than his skin. His arms were easily twice the length of his torso and his nose seemed... non-existent. He wore hippie clothes, hair in dreadlocks and round rose-tinted shades. A bit peculiar, no? The "man" was unmoving, maybe dead? 'Man ~ ,' a draggy voice came out of the body. 'You aren't dead, man.'_

_Stopping all action, said boy went into Hyper Dying Will Mode. Wouldn't hurt to be careful. 'Who are you?'_

_The voice chuckled. 'Sawada Tsunayoshi, my man, are you sure you want to know my name?' _

'_... Yes.' Great, the "man" spoke hippie too._

'_When I was alive, my buds called me, Aveani. I am the Mafia's version of the God of Death. A Shinigami, one might call me. Groovy, no?' he finished proudly. 'I might or might not have come to... I don't know... _Kill you_?' a playful smirk on his lips._

_One might expect Dame-Tsuna to shriek like a banshee, but, Tsuna had grown up under Reborn's harsh tutelage. 'Yes... Very groovy... And you told me I'm not dead. Right.' Sarcasm dripping from his voice._

'_You're not. You're close, so close.' Aveani sighed. 'But, man, you ain't dead yet.' _

'_So I'm like... in between?' asked Tsuna._

'_Right on, man! The thing is, you're supposed to be dead. But someone...' Aveani crossed his gangly arms, an unsatisfied expression present. '...Someone "paid" me in exchange for a month or two extra for you to live.'_

'_Paid? Live? I'm supposed to be dead?' choked Tsuna. Who on bloody earth would pay anything to them just for him. His Guardians ? ... Tsuna rubbed his forehead in frustration._

_Aveani gave a dismissive wave. His hand had only 3 fingers. 'No no, not your Guardians.' Aveani gave a knowing smile as Tsuna's startled expression. 'Surely you couldn't have expected me to be without powers.' Aveani snarled. 'But man,' Aveani pulled his shades down. 'there are thoughts that seems to be out of my reach. And I'm not digging that.'_

_Tsuna almost snorted. Reborn's spartan training was seriously coming in useful. Who knew that it could be used to shield thoughts not only from mafia bosses but from a Shinigami too!_

'_Ah, Reborn the Sun Arcobaleno. He's like, far out, man; escaped death so many times.' Aveani's brow furrowed. 'One day, be it by a bullet wound or old age or by some... other means, I will have him in my clutches soon. I will keep faith, baby.'_

_Again Tsuna had to hold back a snort. Reborn would surely have a long life ahead, He's fucking invincible for god's sake. Even a Shinigami would probably have the hardest time trying to put Reborn down. But that was beside the point. 'W-who "paid" for m-me?' Tsuna inquired._

'_Heheh, _your beloved ancestor of course_.'_

* * *

Takeshi was getting worried. They'd just been informed that Tsuna was in an self-induced comatose state. It was unsure whether he would get out of it or remain in a coma for years to come. Highly unlikely for the former but these doctors didn't know Tsuna like he did. Tsuna would fight his way through all this coma stuff... Right?

Ryohei swore he saw Tsuna's fingers twitch. A tiny twitch, yes, maybe but a twitch nonetheless. He considered telling the others but decided against it. He didn't want them putting their hopes up high only for it to come crashing down again. Right now, they needed cold hard truth; facts, not some illusion his exhausted brain decided to make up. He got up from the seat he'd been seating in for hours, an almost impossible feat for the energetic man. Ryohei made his way to a vending machine down the corridor.

* * *

'_... Reborn... Are you absolutely positive that Tsuna... That he's...' the person stopped. Unable to continue his sentence.  
_

_Reborn nodded. Twiddling his thumbs. 'I'm positive, Dino.' he said quietly._

'_... He's really going to die isn't he? Does he know? Will he know? Are you going to tell him? Is there a cure? Can. My. Little. Brother. Be. Saved?' Dino's flurry of questions were met with silence._

'_Look at me Reborn. Look at me!' bellowed a frustrated Dino, grabbing Reborn by his shoulders. The usually calm, mild Don was furious. How dare Reborn look so helpless, be so helpless when there was a chance, nevermind it being close to nothing, a chance was still a chance and Reborn... Reborn the Hitman, the Arcobaleno, the Confidant of Vongola Decimo has given up. In a softer though firm volume, Dino said, 'Reborn, we must not give up. We _must_ not. He will live against the odds as he has so many times before.'  
Reborn simply pulled his fedora down, covering his sorrowful eyes. He wished it to be so. He closed his eyes. _Tsuna...  
_Dino fell onto his knees, unable to support himself any longer. Tears leaving a wet trail as it ran down his face. 'Do not let my little brother die Reborn. I beg of you.'_

* * *

_Enma had collapsed on the floor. Reborn had come to visit him after the vague call. Only now did he fully understand the gravity - excuse the pun - of the situation. He'd heard of the disease. Heard of it as a third party, nothing more nothing less. But never in his wildest imagination could he ever have thought it would happen Tsuna, his brother, his best friend, his _protector. _'R-reborn...' he laughed nervously. 'It's a joke. A hoax; a prank. Tsuna... Tsuna can't die.' He wiped furiously at his eyes, his voice cracking. 'Tsuna... - hic - He won't... - hic - die. He won't - hic - . He'll - hic - survive. M-make him R-reborn. - hic -.'  
He hunched over on the floor, sobbing. Life without Tsuna was unimaginable. It would be a life without his innocence and familiar warmth. A life without laughter and fun. These past years, Tsuna had done everything in his power to ensure Enma's safety along with his family, his survival in this world, and his happiness. Tsuna had embraced him when no one else had. Letting loose one last sob, Enma's glistening gaze of fiery, unparalleled determination locked with Reborn's cold, calculating eyes and said, 'Tsuna... will not... die... He... will not die... Not, under _my _watch.'_

* * *

_Reborn heaved a sigh just as his laid his hand on the ice cold door handle that lead to Timoteo's personal room. Behind that ornately decorated door was an agitated Timoteo along with Iemitsu. Reborn had called the two on a rather short notice, asking ( read : demanding ) for an immediate meeting. On any other days, it'll be hard to get even a minute with these two but Reborn had only needed to say two words. "Tsuna" and "trouble"._

Reborn took a deep breath, mustered up his courage and opened the door, his eyes landing on both of them and decided to get straight to the point. 'Tsuna is dying.'  
Iemitsu spat out his coffee - in an oddly comical way - as Timoteo dropped his glass of top-quality whiskey. 'What?' asked a glaring Timoteo.  
The glare would've made Reborn's knees shake had he been a lesser man. 'I'll give you the details later but right now, all I know is that for this plan_ to work, we need your help._

_'Iemitsu raised an eyebrow, almost threateningly, _'"Dying"? "We"? "Plan"?'

* * *

'_Xanxus.'_

'_Brat.' Xanxus swigged his bottle of liquor. 'What business does a scum like you have here?'_

_Reborn tried to word it in such a way that it would actually interest Xanxus. 'I need your help.' the Arcobaleno mentally berated himself for being so stupid. This animal - oops, person would be the hardest among all. He'd have to play some mental games._

_Xanxus scoffed. 'If that's all you wanted, then leave trash.'_

'_Decimo is in trouble.'_

'_I. Don't. Fucking. Care.'_

'_He needs your help.'_

'_... Has the scum finally admitted my superiority?'_

_The banter went back and forth for close to an hour. Reborn sighed in exasperation. He was about to leave the room but stopped short slightly before he reached the door. 'Without your cooperation, Sawada Tsunayoshi will die. If or when - god forbid - he dies, _you,_ will lose a supporter. _You,_ will lose a rival. _You, _will lose a great boss. And _you,_ will lose a friend.'_

The hitman turned on his heel and promptly left the room.

* * *

'_Ahh, what do we have here? Reborn-chan! To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?' said Byakuran. The heel of his hand supported his head and his ever present smile on his lips._

'_... You know exactly why.' Reborn pulled the tip of his fedora down a bit, covering his eyes as he crossed his arms._

_Byakuran was still smiling. 'Hmm.' _

'_...'_

'_...'_

_Reborn said, 'I know you haven't completely lost your ability. You're able to catch glimpses of the ongoings in the parallel worlds, are you not?' a smirk was playing on his lips._

_Byakuran's effeminate laugh rang throughout the correctional facility he'd been placed in. He stopped short, narrowed his eyes. His carefree expression replaced by a mask of calm, serious, superiority. _'What do you want to know, Reborn.'_ It was a statement more than anything._

* * *

_Reborn was reaching the end of his short... trip. He stepped into the porch of the Giglio Nero Famiglia, greeted immediately by Aria and her daughter, Yuni._

'_Uncle Reborn!' a twinkle in Yuni's eyes as she tackled him. Had it been anybody else, Reborn would've shot 'em dead right there and then._

_Without a word, Reborn simply patted Yuni's head, rather affectionately, as he shared a look with Aria that said _"we need to talk".

* * *

'Oya, oya, Kyoya.'

Kyoya didn't need to look up to see who'd sat next to him.

'Kufufufu, why the long face? Tsunayoshi wouldn't be happy to be greeted by a face like yours when he wakes up.' Mukuro looked like he was about to start patronizing Kyoya had the latter not spoken first.

'The Omnivore wouldn't be here long enough to see my face or anyone else's for that matter.'

Mukuro stiffened. What? Did he just hear him correctly? The sentence wasn't exactly cryptic but neither was it straightforward. That sentence could only have so many meanings... He sneaked a glance at Kyoya and blanched.

_What was to happen to Sawada Tsunayoshi?_

* * *

**So that's it for now. It was a bit confusing I know. :p Sorry, bros. HAHA. Well, if you'd like to read moreeeee~ Just click the story alert button and I will love you foreverrrrrr ;) HAHA, I'm halfway through writing the 3rd Chapter! :D **

**And if anyone is interested, I've recently gotten a review that suggests I get a BETA. So... Any betas reading this story right now? \:  
**

**Thank you for reading!  
**


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